Rachida Dati stands trial in Paris over 900,000-euro Renault-Nissan fees

Opening of the Paris proceedings

The trial of former French minister Rachida Dati opened on 16 September 2026 before the 32nd chamber of the Paris Criminal Court. Dati, who previously served as Minister of Justice under Nicolas Sarkozy and Minister of Culture under Emmanuel Macron, faces charges of passive corruption, passive influence peddling, and receiving assets obtained through abuse of power. Her co-defendant, former Renault-Nissan chief executive Carlos Ghosn, was tried in absentia. Ghosn, who is 72 years old, remains in Lebanon following his departure from Japan in 2019, and no legal counsel appeared in court on his behalf. The hearings are scheduled to continue until 28 September 2026.

The consultancy agreement and investigation

The prosecution focuses on 900,000 euros paid to Dati between October 2009 and February 2013 by RNBV, the Dutch joint subsidiary managing the Renault-Nissan alliance. Dati and Ghosn signed an advisory contract on 28 October 2009, which stipulated a fixed annual fee of 300,000 euros excluding taxes to assist Renault with international expansion in the Middle East and Maghreb. Records show that Dati issued an advance invoice for 119,600 euros including VAT in November 2009, before her formal admission to the Paris Bar on 17 February 2010. French authorities opened an inquiry through the National Financial Prosecutor's Office in 2019 after a minority shareholder filed a complaint following Ghosn's arrest in Japan in late 2018. An internal audit conducted by Mazars found no tangible documentation specifying the scope or delivery of legal assistance provided by Dati during that period.

Allegations of parliamentary lobbying

Judges and financial prosecutors argue that the consultancy agreement served to conceal lobbying activities within the European Parliament, where Dati served as a member between 2009 and 2019. Prosecutors noted that during her mandate, Dati submitted three parliamentary questions regarding the automotive industry between 2012 and 2013. Investigators also allege that the payments were intended to facilitate political access to President Nicolas Sarkozy prior to the end of his term in 2012. If convicted, Dati faces a potential five-year ban from public office, which would force her resignation as mayor of Paris's 7th arrondissement, an office she has held since 2008.

Defense arguments and corporate claims

Dati has denied all charges, maintaining that her work was strictly restricted to legal advisory services permitted under European parliamentary regulations. Before the opening session, her defense attorneys rejected the prosecution's case in a written statement.

The defense will demonstrate that Rachida Dati worked exclusively as a lawyer for RNBV and that the unfounded accusations of alleged influence peddling in the European Parliament are nothing more than an artificial intellectual construction of the prosecution.

Renault joined the proceedings as a civil party, seeking recognition for moral damages alongside anti-corruption associations. Legal counsel for the car manufacturer stated that Dati's defense team filed 45 procedural appeals prior to the opening of the trial. Reports compiled during her parliamentary tenure indicate that Dati received a total of two million euros in corporate advisory fees from several firms, including 800,000 euros from France Télécom and 300,000 euros from EDF Suez.